All You Wanted
by ella nchanted
Summary: Two heros, both broken. What they need, they don't realise is right in frount of both of them...


**This just came to m mid randomly one day trying to get rid of all my other writer's blocks, LOL. I'm super excited that I actually have something to post again! :)**

Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, I do not own Harry Potter blah, blah, blah... Song credited to Michelle Branch.  


_I wanted to be like you  
I wanted everything  
So I tried to be like you  
And I got swept away_

I swept through the corridors, furious as hell. I knew for a fact that my magic was swirling around me, because not only was there a subtle crackle in the air so late at night, but I could just feel my hair beginning to frizz again. He had pissed off the wrong Gryffindor for the last time! Half of my damned team missed practice because he, once again, put them in detention; including my Captain. This was the last straw.

I was in full belief that he did this JUST to make my life hell. He had made it hell while I went to school, he made fun of me for the following two years after the battle ended when Ron and I split because we realised we were better off as friends, and then after Albus passed and Minerva took over he did the same thing when I took over as Head of House and Transfiguration Professor! But now, this "rivalry" of his had gone way too far, enough was enough.

I finally reached my destination of the Dungeons, and slammed open the door with as much power as possible. I vaguely saw my Seeker, Keeper, and two Beaters jump two feet out of their seats. "Common Room," I snarled. "Now!" Immediately, all four of them jumped out of their seats and bolted towards the door.

"Not so fast," his silky voice drawled. My Lions stopped dead in their tracks. "I did not say your detention was over. Sit back down." I growled low in the back of my throat.

"If you four do not get to the Common Room right now you will have a much worse punishment than sitting in this classroom." Knowing I meant what I said, they ignored him, and dashed out the door as fast as possible. It was his turn to growl.

"Just what do you think you're doing, Professor? This was an assigned punishment by ME," he said, setting his quill down and looking at me. "You do not have the authority to just barge in here and end my detention."

"Actually, I do," I stated simply. "You do not have a good enough reason to keep them in detention. Aside from the fact that you KNEW there was Quidditch Practice tonight!" Approaching his desk, I slammed my hands down flat on his desk. "Do NOT insult my intelligence or patronize me, Severus! This is the third time this month. I will not allow you to put my team in detention just because you are so damned competitive to win the Quidditch Cup this year!"

_I didn't know that it was so cold and  
You needed someone to  
Show you the way  
So I took your hand and we figured out that  
When the time comes  
I'd take you away_

Suddenly, he was around his desk and standing directly in frount of me. "Do not EVER accuse me of such ridiculous things," he snarled. He stood tall above me, trying to make me cower like a first year; not that it was working. "The first time that may have been true, but when those four sit in class talking constantly, not paying a lick of attention, and melt, not one but, all FOUR cauldrons. Not only did they put themselves in danger, but they put every person in this classroom in danger, Hermione!"

"Then you should have, at the very least, reported it to their Head of House; as they are not Slytherins! Because I guarantee you that if you had I would not be standing here, questioning your audacity and stupidity; I would have probably made their bloody punishment worse!" By the end of my speech, our faces were inches apart and our chests heaving from our heavy breathing due to all our yelling. After a moment, his posture relaxed slightly.

"You would have?" Looking at his face, I watched it soften slightly as well as the confusion creep in. I sighed, letting my posture also slack a bit.

"Yes, Severus," I said softly, "I would have. Honestly. How many times did you yell at me for helping Neville? I did it because he was dreadful at Potions and I was trying to prevent the classroom from blowing up." He gently gazed into my eyes for a moment before suddenly reaching up and cupping my face before pressing his lips firmly against mine. I stiffened for a moment, before quickly relaxing against his body and grabbing a fistful of his robes, pulling him closer. Just as quickly as it began, it ended.

Before my eyes even opened, I heard the door to his private chambers slam shut. When I opened my eyes, I was staring at a wall with one thought in my head: _Severus Snape just kissed me._

_If you want to  
I can save you,  
I can take you away from here  
So lonely inside  
So busy out there  
And all you wanted was  
Somebody who cared_

I continued to stand in that same spot for a moment, in complete and utter shock. Severus Snape, the man who had made my life hell for the war, and then his own personal amusement for the past thirteen years just stood in his classroom and kissed me. I wondered what went through his head when he had finally realised what had happened.

After a while, I quietly exited the classroom, and made my way back to my rooms. I was in a daze, not only on the walk back but also as I got ready for bed. Unfortunately for me, sleep evaded me that night. For every time I closed my eyes I felt his lips on mine, his hands gently cupping my face, and the feel of his body pressed against mine.

_I'm sinking slowly  
So hurry hold me  
Your hand is all I have  
To keep me hanging on  
Please can you tell me  
So I can finally see  
Where you go when you're gone_

Breakfast the next morning was complete hell. Not only are our seats next to each other, but Severus wasn't there when I arrived like usual. I carefully made my way to the frount and sat down, feeling Minerva's gaze on me. "Yes, Minnie?" I said quietly. She tilted her head to the side a bit.

"Hermione, are you alright?" I nodded, giving her a weak smile. She blinked, still looking at me. "Would you join me for tea this afternoon?" I gave her a small but genuine smile.

"Of course, I'd be delighted." She gave me a smile in return, and I turned to my plate. Thank Merlin it was Saturday, and not Hogsmeade. After a few minutes, I felt his presence enter the Hall but refused to look up.

"Good morning, Severus," Minerva said. He nodded once, and took his seat between us. I tried to keep my body from visibly going stiff, but I must have failed because Minerva raised a brow at me.

"Severus," I said quietly, to keep from anything seeming unnormal.

"Hermione," he replied just as softly. I could see Minerva's brows disappearing into her hairline. I knew she suspected something was going on, or at least went on. I tried to subtly ignore her, as I continued to eat my breakfast in as little peace as I could get with him sitting millimeters away from me. I got up after a few minutes and left wordlessly.

Deciding I would get no peace in my mind if I tried to grade papers, I decided to sit down in my favourite chair and read my favourite book; _Hogwarts, A History_. Before I knew it, the clock was striking noon. Knowing that Minerva never comes down for lunch, preferring afternoon tea instead, I headed up to her office. The Stone Gargoyle let me by without a password, and I stepped onto the moving staircase as it ascended to the Headmistress' Office. I only had to knock twice, before hearing her call to enter. Minerva looked up with a smile.

"Hermione, come in. Tea just arrived." She stood, gesturing to the two chairs by the fire. "Come, let's sit. It's been a while since we just had a chat." We both sat, as I eyed her all knowing smile wearily. I swear, some things rubbed off of her husband onto her; including that infuriating twinkle, and his all knowing smile. After pouring both of our cups and settling back in our chairs, she smiled into her cup. "So, dear, how is Harry?" I tried not to let my suspicion show as I took a sip before answering.

"He's doing well. He got promoted to Head of Aurors last week. Took him about as long as any other Auror, so no one can say he got there unfairly." Minerva nodded with a bright smile. She was quite proud of Harry. He had been offered the Head position immeadiately after the war, but graciously declined with the statement that he would rather work day and night to earn the job fairly then just have it handed to him because he defeated Voldemort twice. "Ginny and little Albus are doing wonderfully. She can hardly believe he is three years now; said that time is passing by just as quickly as it did with James."

"And Mr. Weasley?" I shrugged.

"He's been gone so often with the Canons, and his fan club following and fawning all over him, he hardly writes. Charlie went to his last game and said that apart from wanting to vomit while watching all the girls throw themselves at him, he looked well."

"And what about you, Hermione?" Minerva asked nonchalantly. "When are you planning on settling down?" I choked a bit on my tea, with slight surprise. I had not expected that at all. I gently set down my cup before speaking.

"I don't know, Minerva," I said quietly. "Ron and I were just better off as friends. All I ever was in school was the nerdy, bookworm, know-it-all. No one ever liked me, let alone even looked at me like that." She laughed a bit, causing me to look at her.

"Oh, I'm sure someone saw you as an intellectual woman at some point." I snorted.

"Sure. Just who would have seen me like that, Minerva?" I grabbed my cup for another sip of tea, not expecting the next words out of her mouth.

"The only person who could ever match you equally in intellect and knowledge." She almost smirked, waiting for me to take a drink I swear because her next words were timed perfectly to my sip. "Severus, of course."

_If you want to  
I can save you  
I can take you away from here  
So lonely inside  
So busy out there  
And all you wanted was  
Somebody who cared_

Every last drop of tea that was in my mouth came out. I didn't choke, I spit it out in shock. Slowly, I turned my head to look at her but she continued to stare into the fire with a smile on her lips while she continued to drink her tea. "Pardon me?" I barely managed to squeak out. Minerva set her cup down on the saucer, her smile even bigger.

"Oh yes, of course," she continued. "He always talked about you, and how you were doing in class; always praising you above everyone else. He even had that look that Albus always used to give me. That falling in love look." She sighed, almost dreamily. "I don't believe he would ever admit it, but you were his favourite student. He actually expressed his surprise to me when you decided to persue Transfiguration and not Potions. I'm surprised he didn't tear apart this office, he seemed quite upset!" She smiled into her tea again as she took another sip, I sat there shocked a bit.

After a minute, I got past the shock. "Please, Minerva, you must be over exaggerating. This is Severus Snape we're talking about. The man who made my school life hell, wouldn't stop talking at me about Ron's and my split, and then made my first few years teaching here hell as well! If that's admiration, then I would hate to see what him hating me is like." I think Minerva realised I was leaving something out, as she leaned towards me a bit, urging me to continue. I stared at the fire, thinking about the kiss from last night. He really was just slightly misunderstood. I mean, Harry told me privately some of what he saw in his mind during his Occlumency lessons. But maybe, that meant that Minerva could just be right... Did he just need a push in the right direction? Did he just need someone who actually cared?

I heard Minerva laugh lightly. "That's exactly what he needs, dear." I looked at her with wide eyes to see her smiling. "You still think out loud, Hermione." I laughed a bit, shaking my head. That was something I used to do a long time ago, apparently I never got past it like I thought. "What about your admiration of him?" I raised my brow in question, causing her to laugh again. "Please, Hermione! I used to watch you stare at him from the table at meals. That, and you are the only one who even tried to have a civil relationship with him despite his past and the House Rivalry." I stared into the fire again, she was right. Something changed in my 7th Year, I saw him in a different light. He wasn't a conventionally handsome man, but he had an aristocratic air about him. His nose was actually a defining characteristic, not something ginormously misplaced.

_All you wanted was  
Somebody who cares  
If you need me  
You know I'll be there  
Oh yeah_

Suddenly, I dropped my cup; somehow I had been falling in love with him over the years, and never realised it once. It hit me like a ton of bricks. Without saying a word, I got up and left Minerva's office. I vaguely heard mumbling, probably her and Albus saying something but I actually didn't care for once.

I knew exactly where he would be, because he was never in the Great Hall for lunch; Minerva quit forcing him to come down after Albus passed, she knew he would come up for breakfast and dinner. With as much purpose as I had last night when I stormed into his office in rage, I strode back down to the Dungeons but this time with passion. Once again, I didn't knock but threw the door open with a bang. I watched him visibly jump before looking at me with surprise, before narrowing his eyes.

"What do you want NOW, Professor? Come to accuse me and yell at me about something else," he said, barely keeping his cool. "Perhaps the fact that you no longer desire to sit next to me at meals? Nothing you can do about that. Maybe insult how I teach your incessant Gryffindors?" Before he could say another word I came around the side of his desk, grabbed his face in my hands, and bent down to kiss him. I felt his resistance at first, but he quickly pulled me onto his lap and ran a hand through my hair before deepening the kiss. After a moment, I pulled back to look him directly in the eyes.

"I love you, Severus," I said quietly.

_If you want to  
I can save you  
I can take you away from here  
So lonely inside  
So busy out there  
And all you wanted was  
Somebody who cares_

His eyes went wide for a second, before he practically shoved me off of him. "No," he said. "You don't." I stared at him, my mouth open in shock.

"How the hell would you know, Severus?" I said, before my shock turned to anger. "Are you saying you feel nothing for me? Nothing at all! What about the fact that _you_ kissed _me_ last night? But I guess I should have figured it meant nothing with as fast as you left the bloody room! Or how cold and indifferent you were this morning at breakfast should have been my sign!" Before I could continue, he grabbed me and kissed me again. It started out rough like the last two times, but he quickly made it much softer by pulling his lips away for a second before lowering them back down gently. This kiss was so different from anything I had ever experienced before, let alone how I felt when we had kissed before. Finally, he pulled away and looked me directly in the eye.

"What I meant is you can't love me," he whispered. "I have done too much in my life to be good enough for you. You have no idea the self control I have had to endure over the years to not do something like that." He stroked my cheek with his thumb gently before continuing. "Last night... You were just so beautiful standing there. Yes, your hair had frizzed again but you were still gorgeous to me. We were standing so close, something inside me just snapped... I had been doing so well with my control over the years." He sighed, tilting his head slightly, looking straight into my eyes. "The reason I ran out so fast is because I was mad at myself, not because I regretted it."

The only sound I could make was a strangled sob. "Severus, I don't care about your past. I fell in love with you while I was still your student," I confessed quietly. "My afternoon tea with Minerva made me realise that. You never intimidated me, you inspired me." I laughed a bit. "Bloody hell, I'm sure if anyone had seen me last night they would have said something about looking like you storming through the halls the way you do." At that, Severus gave me a genuine smile. I looked down at the floor for a moment before looking back up and directly into his obsidian eyes. "It took me until now to realise that... _She_ never really cared. Not in the way that you need someone to care about you, to not judge you. I never have, Severus. Nor will I ever. Please, let me be that person. I want to be the one that helps you escape the nightmares. Maybe... Maybe you can be the person that takes away mine." I looked away from him as I said the last part. I had never admitted to anyone that I was still having nightmares from the war.

_If you want to  
I can save you  
I can take you away from here  
So lonely inside  
So busy out there  
And all you wanted was  
Somebody who cares_

I felt his hand leave my face to rest under my chin. He turned my head back to him, making me look into his eyes again. Eyes that were full of worry. "You still have nightmares?" Severus asked quietly. I nodded, tears filling my eyes. Severus gathered me up in his arms, holding me close. "I'm so sorry, love. You were so young, too young for war." For the first time in years, I broke down. I buried my face into his shoulder, the tears falling freely. I felt drops on my shoulder, and realised that Severus was also crying; something I don't believe anyone other than possibly Albus and Minerva have ever seen. "I still do too," he whispered into my shoulder.

I realised that all we needed, the both of us, was someone who was going to actually give us what we needed; someone who would sit there and let us just cry, just be us. It was because of the war that we would both randomly just stare off into space, we were lost in our thoughts, our old dreams, everything. But here before me stood a man, who apparently loved me as much as I loved him, that was finally opening up to someone who he now knew cared.

He moved his head to look at me, before wiping the tears from my eyes; then, he leaned down to place a gentle kiss on my lips. Severus leaned back ever so slightly to just barely separate our lips before he whispered, "I love you, Hermione." I could only respond by reconnecting our lips, and pulling him tighter to me.

I had, finally, found somebody who cared.

_Please, can you tell me  
So I can finally see  
Where you go  
When you're gone_


End file.
